Earring formed of dissimilar half rings

ABSTRACT

AN EARRING STRUCTURE EMBODIED AS A PAIR IS DISCLOSED, WHICH ENGAGES THE EAR LOBE TO PARALLEL THE FACE. THE EARRINGS DISCLOSED HEREIN EACH INCLUDE TWO DISTINCTLY DIFFERENT HALF RINGS, THE ENDS OF WHICH ARE EACH SIMILARLY BEVELLED SO THAT UPON MATING TWO RING HALVES TOGETHER JOINTS ARE DEFINED WHICH LIE SUBSTANTIALLY IN A PLANE EXTENDING THROUGH THE RING WHICH IS OFFSET FROM PARALLELISM WITH THE AXIS OF THE RING. A SIMPLE SPRING HINGE IS AFFIXED AT ONE OF THE JOINTS SO DEFINED.

United States Patent [72] Inventors Lloyd F.Crisfield Torrance;

Tobias S. Rosner, Los Angeles, both of Mar. 4, 1969 June 28, 197 l Assignee to Crisln Corporation Appl. Nd. Filed Patented EARRING FORMED 0F DISSIMILAR HALF RINGS 4 Claims, 4 Drawing Figs.

US. Cl.... 63/14 Int. Cl. A44c 7/00 Fleldofsarch 63/l2, l3,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,611,251 9/1952 Guth 63/14 FOREIGN PATENTS 147,425 1 l/ 1920 Great Britain 63/12 Primary ExaminerF. Barry Shay Attomey-Nilsson, Robbins, Wills and Berliner ABSTRACT: An earring structure embodied as a pair is disclosed, which engages the ear lobe to parallel the face. The earrings disclosed herein each include two distinctly different half rings, the ends of which are each similarly bevelled so that upon mating two ring halves together joints are defined which lie substantially in a plane extending through the ring which is offset from parallelism with the axis of the ring. A simple spring hinge is affixed at one of the joints so defined.

EARRING FORMED OF DISSIMILAR HALF RINGS BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Earrings have long been a popular and traditional item of jewelry. In the past, it has sometimes been the practice to pierce the earlobes to accommodate earrings which are affixed therein. Although the practice has varied in popularity over the years, many prefer earrings which are affixed to the ear without the necessity of piercing.

A wide variety of different clamps and clamp structures have been incorporated into earrings over the years for use in afiixing them to the earlobe. Of course, the form of clamp employed is determined to some extent by the nature of the earring. For example, the so-called wedding band" earrings comprising simply an ornamented or plain loop employed a clamp arrangement which is integrated into the actual ring structure. Specifically, for example, such an earring may consist of two semicircular half rings with one pair of ends joined by a spring hinge. Although vast quantities of such earrings have been produced and used in the past, certain inherent disadvantages are attendant their use. Specifically, the opposed clamping surfaces are sometimes of relatively small area with the result that the wearer may experience discomfort or even pain after a period of wearing such an earring. However, perhaps of greater significance, the earrings tend to be canted with reference to the wearer's head with the result that the earrings do not hang in their most attractive position. That is, wedding band" earrings have been found to most attractively adorn the wearer when the rings are positioned substantially parallel to the wearer's head, i.e. with the two rings coaxial.

In general, the present invention resides in an earring structure which engages the earlobe in such a manner as to lie parallel to the wearer's head. The structure consists of two distinct half rings for each individual earring. The ends of each half ring are bevelled so that when a pair of half rings are joined, joints are defined which pass through the ring at an angle offset from axial parallelism.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING In the drawings, which constitute a part of this specification, exemplary embodiments demonstrating various objectives and features hereof are set forth, specifically:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an earring constructed in accordance with the present invention affixed to the ear of a wearer;

FIG. 2 is a top plan and diagrammatic view of a pair of earrings constructed in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a side elevation view of one earring constructed in accordance with the present invention; and

FIG. 4 is an exploded view of the earring as shown in F163.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENT Referring now to FIG. 1, there is shown an earring E adoming a subject S. The earring E, constructed in accordance with the present invention, lies substantially parallel to the side of the subjects head thereby providing a considerably enhanced appearance. An analysis of the structure resulting in parallel positioning will now be pursued with reference to FIG. 2.

A pair of earrings l and 12 are shown in top plan view. Earring is for the right ear of a subject, while earring 12 is for the left ear. As is somewhat schematically indicated, the wearer faces in the direction indicated by the arrow 14. Consequently, the lobe of the wearer's ears fall generally in complementary planes indicated by lines 16 and 18. As shown in FIG. 2, the earrings l0 and I2 define gaps 20 and 22 which traverse through the earrings 10 and 12 respectively and are aligned with the lines 16 and 18 respectively. Consequently, it may be seen that the earrings 10 and 12, when affixed to a subject's earlobes, lie substantially parallel radially and axially concentric. Of course, the subjects individual contours will probably result in some deviation from a precise relationship;

however, it is apparent that generally the earrings will hang so as to be neatly aligned with the subject's head.

Considering the structural details of the earrings, each earring includes two half rings. Specifically, the earring 10 includes half rings 24 and 26 while the earring 12 includes half rings 28 and 30. The ends of the half rings are bevelled to define joints through the circular ring which are angularly offset from parallelism with the axis of the ring as indicated by the line 32. The lower joints of the rings are affixed together by spring hinges which are exposed on the interior surfaces of the rings as will be considered below.

The earrings l0 and 12 are somewhat similar in appearance; however, the two are distinctly different as indicated above by reason of the complementary relationship of the gaps 20 and 22. Of course, the lower joints of the earrings are respectively parallel to the gaps 20 and 22 to accommodate hinged opening of the earrings. The mounting arrangement for the hinge structure joining the two half rings is generally similar and as a result only the earring I0 is shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 indicating the hinge arrangement.

Specifically referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, the earring 10 may be seen, as described above, to include two half rings 24 and 26. The half ring 2 8 has beveled ends 36 and 40 while the ring 26 has beveled ends 42 and 44. The ends 36 and 40 of the half ring 24 lie substantially in a plane to matingly engage the ends 42 and 44. As explained above, the plane so defined passes through the earring 10 at an angle substantially offset from the central axis of the ring.

The ends 40 and 42 are affixed together by a spring hinge 46 which is mounted on the upper surfaces inside the ring. The spring hinge 46 may comprise a well known component as employed in jewelry and consists of simply a pair of hinged plates 48 and 50 mated together in hinged relationship with a spring 52 therein.

The hinged plates 48 and 50 are affixed to the half rings 24 and 26 substantially perpendicular to the joint defined by the ends 40 and 44. Consequently, the earring It) may be opened by separating the ends 36 and 42 which move apart in a direction substantially perpendicular to the mating surfaces of the ends 36 and 42.

In the manufacture of earrings incorporating the present invention, four distinct and different ring halves are employed. These different units and their distinct shapes may be best understood from a consideration of FIG. 2. In this regard, it is to be noted that the lower portion of the earring may be of greater cross-sectional area than the upper portion at which the gaps 2t) and 22 are defined. Such an arrangement affords increased space for mounting the hinge 46 and also tends to provide an improved weight distribution within the structure. Furthennore, decorative ornamentation may be provided on the earrings in any of an unlimited variety of patterns and styles. Specifically, for example, decorative overlays 56 and 58 are shown on the earrings 10 and 12 respectively in FIG. 2. Whether or not such ornamentation is provided, in the event the earring is anything but a purely symmetrical shape, four distinct configurations are required.

Considering the structures as set forth in FIG. 2 somewhat more analytically, it may be seen that the half ring 24 is of small cross section at the top, large cross section at the bottom and the ends thereof are beveled downwardly from left to right in the position as shown. The half ring 26 is also of larger size at the bottom, bears the overlay 56 and has the beveled edges differently formed to afford mating engagement with the half ring 24. The earring 12 is a distinctly different structure from the earring 10 in view of the complementary angle the gap 22 defines with the gap 20. Consequently, four distinct and different half rings are disclosed.

In the manufacture of earrings incorporating the present invention, the ring halves may be variously formed as by conventional molding techniques employed in the jewelry arts. Of course, the earrings will normally be formed of metal; however, plastics and other materials may also be utilized. The hinge 46 may be an element employed as a component in various prior items of jewelry and well known in the jewelry arts. of course, a variety of techniques also as well known in the jewelry arts may be employed to affix the hinge 46 to the ring halves, e.g. hinge 46 to ring halves 24 and 26. Finally, the unitary earrings may be variously finished as by dipping, plating, painting anodizing, and so on.

in using the earrings as disclosed herein, most subjects experience virtually no discomfort either from excess pressure or apprehension that the ring will fall from the earlobe. In this regard, the ends of the ring halves defining the gaps 20 and 22 are ridged with small grooves and lands (FIG. 3) which results in an irregular surface and tends to improve the characteristics of the earring. I

The earrings described herein, although of somewhat irregular annular shape, have been described as defining the beveled surfaces which are particularly significant. In various 1. An earring comprising:

a first half ring, the ends of which are similarly beveled to define first half end surfaces in substantially the same plane, which plane is offset from parallelism with the axis of said ring;

a second half ring, the ends of which are similarly beveled to define second half end surfaces that are complementary to said first half end surfaces whereby upon mating engagement of said first and second half rings at said end surfaces, a ring is defined; and

spring hinge means affixed between one first half end of said first half ring and a mating second half end of said second half ring to fix said half rings together.

2. A pair of earrings as defined by claim 1 wherein the ends of the ring halves of one earring are beveled at an angle that is complementary to the angle at which the ring halves of the other earring are beveled.

3. An earring according to claim 1 wherein said ends of said half rings which are affixed to said spring hinge are of larger sectional area than the other mating ends of said half rings.

4. An earring according to claim 1 wherein said spring hinge posed. 

